Tag: American Pie

REVIEW: The Girl Next Door [2004]

Jared Mobarak

“I’ll always remember … “ A film not necessarily loved upon release—many actually reviled it for “glamorizing” the life of a porn star—Luke Greenfield‘s The Girl Next Door was and still is a hilarious coming of age story for a post-American Pie world. It’s about finding yourself on the cusp of high school graduation without a memory worth telling as hitting the books and being a consummate student leaves you wanting. Matthew Kidman (Emile Hirsch) did everything he was supposed to on his quest to Georgetown and only found a…

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REVIEW: B.O.Y.D. [2012]

Jared Mobarak

“It’s the McKinley Mall, dude—not LA” The concept of localized indie film carries with it the caveat of losing audience members who can’t understand references sprinkled throughout because they’ve never been to the locale. It’s a fine line filmmakers must toe when dealing outside the big city mentality of an NYC or LA and could potentially make or break a work’s chances to exist anywhere besides the Christmas stockings of families and friends. The story and characters need to be universal in order to transport viewers to its setting rather…

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REVIEW: American Reunion [2012]

Jared Mobarak

“I snagged a pelt or two” Considering the American Pie saga pretty much paved the way for films like Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle, it’s a fitting turn of events to see Jon Hurwitz and Hayden Schlossberg bring the East Great Falls kids back for their thirteenth reunion. Wait, thirteenth? What happened to the tenth? It sounds contrived, but it’s also exactly the kind of stupid idea MILF Guy #2 (John Cho) would pull to relive the days of old and show off his glorious new ‘stache. The…

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REVIEW: American Pie 2 [2001]

Jared Mobarak

“That’s a lot of flutes” Right when you thought Kevin (Thomas Ian Nicholas) learned his lesson about manipulating the lives of his friends to compensate for his own insecurities, he does it again. Scared to go to college before becoming a man, American Pie followed his misguided pact to ensure his best friends would lose their virginity before graduation. One year later, American Pie 2 brings the whole gang back for a summer break meant to show their success in taking ‘the next step’ having since gotten sex out of…

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REVIEW: American Pie [1999]

Jared Mobarak

“Suck me, beautiful” I’ll admit now that my love for American Pie is rooted heavily in nostalgia. Having first seen it in theatres as I was entering my own senior year of high school, the comradery of its band of brothers cautiously walking together towards graduation and manhood doesn’t quite resonate as much today at age thirty. My seventeen-year old self remembers the performances being a bit more honed and the scripting a tad crisper, but the one thing that didn’t change with an older and maybe wiser perspective is…

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REVIEW: Armed and Dangerous [1986]

Jared Mobarak

“I got my Christmas goose early” If a band like Atlantic Starr is singing your movie’s theme song, it’s a pretty easy guess you’re from the 1980s. To most this tag is a detriment but others wear it like a badge of honor. Armed and Dangerous is one such film, letting the likes of John Candy and Eugene Levy run with its simple comedic plot as director Mark L. Lester hones his action expertise in order to destroy a bunch of cars with a renegade sixteen-wheeler, rocket fuel, and guided…

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REVIEW: The Virginity Hit [2010]

Jared Mobarak

“Have you ever seen your mom naked? … I have.” Writers Andrew Gurland and Huck Botko saw some decent success with The Last Exorcism last month, but did anyone know they also concocted a faux documentary style American Pie, eventually scooped up by Will Ferrell and Adam McKay’s Gary Sanchez Productions? The movie is called The Virginity Hit and the title is pretty much on the nose concerning four high school nerds and a pack to take a toke off their naked woman shaped bong once they cash in their…

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REVIEW: Sex Drive [2008]

Jared Mobarak

“I refuse to be embarrassed by a car that looks like a Trapper Keeper” Not to badmouth American Pie, I actually really enjoyed it and its sequels, albeit less with each installment (and I mean the theatrically released offspring), but I must blame it for the dearth of quality for copycats each year. Sure there are some surprises—Eurotrip, I know, I really liked it, sue me—mixed in with the drivel, it’s just a shame they are so few and far between. Nothing will ever compare to the greats such as…

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REVIEW: The Golden Compass [2007]

Jared Mobarak

“Just a small little cut” I have thought that Philip Pullman’s His Dark Materials Trilogy would make some very interesting films ever since I read them almost a decade ago. The fantasy and utter intrigue that they instilled in me never left my consciousness. When I heard that American Pie director Chris Weitz would be helming it, I wasn’t quite sure what to expect. I’ve seen many movies in my time to know that past work means often little when it comes to future endeavors, but I admit to enjoying…

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